Brasil: consequencias politicas da reducao da desigualdade - Oxford University

Um importante encontro para debate entre especialistas, numa área em que crenças políticas, simpatias partidárias e honestidade científica se juntam para complicar justamente a dimensão política desse fenômeno real no Brasil.
Suas consequências políticas são mais difíceis de serem avaliadas, pois elas penetram no subconsciente nacional, ou melhor, na psicologia das massas, como se diria antigamente.

Workshop:  “Political Consequences of Declining Inequality in Brazil”
University of Oxford, 3 December
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co-sponsored by the Brazilian Studies Programme (www.brazil.ox.ac.uk) and the Oxford Centre for the Study of Inequality and Democracy (ocsid.politics.ox.ac.uk)

Friday, 3 December 2010
Tawney Room, Rewley House, 1 Wellington Square with the generous support of Santander Universities (www.santander.com)

Although Brazil remains a world leader in inequality, the Gini coefficient of income inequality has been falling perceptibly since the early 1990s. The past 5-7 years have seen a notable reduction in poverty rates, with some analysts heralding the emergence of a “new middle class.” Factors contributing to this trend include renewed economic growth, improved education, sustained increases in the minimum wage, and innovative social policies introduced by the past two governments. In particular, the conditional cash transfer programme known as Bolsa Família has generated intense interest both in Brazil and abroad. While economists, sociologists, and demographers have been swift to document the decline in poverty and inequality in Brazil, few have explored the political implications of these trends.
Given that the institutions and practices of Brazilian politics have long been causally linked to the presence of deep inequalities in the country, this day-long workshop aims to analyse both the macropolitical and micropolitical consequences of recent social changes. The key questions are whether (1) government social policy and (2) the declining economic vulnerability of the poor make any difference for the politics of democracy in Brazil.
The workshop will feature nine papers from social scientists who will appraise the implications of social change for democratic development. Topics include electoral realignments, the possible
erosion of oligarchy, new approaches to clientelism and “exchange politics,” political implications of rising labor formality and improved educational/literacy outputs, the impact on governance of rising living standards in peripheral communities, the effects of improving social indicators on longstanding ideological divisions between left and right, the possible accrual of a long-term political legacy for Lula’s PT, and the extent to which subnational politicians (governors and mayors) engage in credit-
claiming. The majority of papers focus centrally on Bolsa Família, allowing us to advance the emerging theoretical debates on the implications of conditional cash transfers for democracy
and development. We will conclude the day with a keynote presentation by Dr Marcelo Neri of the Centre for Social Policies, Getúlio Vargas Foundation, who will lay out the empirical panorama of the recent reduction in Brazilian inequality.

9:05-10:45    Panel 1: Patterns of Voting and Public Opinion
Chair: Andrew Hurrell (University of Oxford)
“Realignment in Brazil”
André Singer (University of São Paulo)
“Poorest Voters vs. Poorest Places: Persistent Patterns and Recent Changes in Brazilian Electoral Patterns”
Cesar Zucco Jr. (Princeton University)
“Electoral Gains and Losses from Conditional Cash Transfer Programs: How Bolsa Família Led to the Polarization of the Brazilian Electorate”
Diego Sanches Correa (University of Illinois)
Discussant: Anthony W. Pereira (King’s College, London)

11:00-12:30   Panel 2: New Perspectives on Clientelism and Exchange Politics
Chair: Nancy Bermeo (University of Oxford)
“Creating Citizens or Clients: The Impact of Bolsa Família in Brazil”
Wendy Hunter (University of Texas at Austin)
“Their Separate Ways: Leftist Mobilization and Clientelist Continuity in Brazilian Subnational Politics”
Alfred P. Montero (Carleton College)
“Agents of Citizenship or Agents of Clientelism? The Cultural Dilemma of Bolsa Família’s State Monitors.”
Presented by Luciana Veiga (Universidade Federal do Paraná) on behalf of co-authors Simone Bohn (York University), Salete da Dalt (Universidade Federal Fluminense), André Augusto Pereira Brandão (Universidade Federal Fluminense), César Augusto da Silva (Federal University of Vale do São Francisco), and Victor Hugo de Carvalho Gouvêa (Universidade Federal Fluminense)
Discussant: David Doyle (Dublin City University)

14:00-15:30   Panel 3: Framing the Public Debate on Redistribution
Chair: Alessandra Aldé (Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro)
“Inequality and Support for Redistribution”
Fabiana Machado (Inter-American Development Bank)
“The Debate on the Reduction of Inequality in Brazil: An Analysis of the 2010 Presidential Campaign”
Marcia Ribeiro Dias (Pontifícia Universidade Católica, Rio Grande do Sul)
“Coalitions for Equity-Enhancing Reform in Brazil”
Diego Sánchez-Ancochea and Timothy J. Power (University of Oxford)
Discussant: Camille Goirand (University of Lille)

15:45-17:30   Panel 4: Keynote Address
Chair: Antonio David Cattani (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul)
“The Decade of Inequality Reduction in Brazil: Causes, Consequences and Perspectives”
Marcelo Neri (Fundação Getúlio Vargas, Rio de Janeiro)
Discussant: Edmund Amann (University of Manchester)

17:30-18:00   Closing Remarks and Adjournment

FOR MORE INFO and to register, please contact: david.robinson@lac.ox.ac.uk prior to 30 November 2010